Turbo Steve
Top Post Dawg
- Joined
- Jan 11, 2000
- Location
- .
Conventional and Synthetic Oil Basics - 101
In any oil refinery throughout the world, crude oil from dinosaurs and etc... is pumped out of the ground and separated into various grades of what refiners call stocks, which become the basis for conventional or dino-based lubricating oils and fuels.
These thick tar-like masses can be used for road work or as asphalt materials for roofing tar by contractors. Conversely, thinner compounds are much more volatile and can be easily refined to produce diesel, gasoline, engine oils, and other oily solvents.
The above scenario is an example of petroleum refining of carbon products and even though it's an advanced science, small amounts of contaminants, such as sulfur or wax cannot be completely removed from petroleum and may end up in motor oil base stocks. It is the wax-like gelling in petroleum oils which make it harder for your car to turn over as the crankshaft attempts to spin through this thickly gelled substance on cold mornings.
Moreover, it wasn't until about 30 years ago that companies began looking for lubricants that would flow easily at extremely low temperatures. This search led to the development of manmade synthetic based fluids that are free from these waxes and contaminants which cause conventional lubricants to solidify during cold temperatures.
The result of this inspired research was the development of polyalphaolefins (PAO) and/or esters, which when combined, form a unique additive package comprising the basics of synthetic oils in the Group IV & V Oil Category.
PAO's were made decades ago by chemically joining ethylene molecules into carbon chains of uniform length and shape. The beauty of this is that these carbon chains can remain liquid and slippery under the widest range of engine conditions possible. The PAO's are then combined with an polyol-ester, which is simply a compound formed from the reaction of alcohol and certain acids. The resulting synthetic fluid provides optimum performance properties for engine lubricants which we all can benefit from today.
AMSOIL and Mobil were early pioneers in the development of synthetic fluids and still work together today as industry leaders in their respective specialities.
[ August 20, 2001: Message edited by: Turbo Steve ]
In any oil refinery throughout the world, crude oil from dinosaurs and etc... is pumped out of the ground and separated into various grades of what refiners call stocks, which become the basis for conventional or dino-based lubricating oils and fuels.
These thick tar-like masses can be used for road work or as asphalt materials for roofing tar by contractors. Conversely, thinner compounds are much more volatile and can be easily refined to produce diesel, gasoline, engine oils, and other oily solvents.
The above scenario is an example of petroleum refining of carbon products and even though it's an advanced science, small amounts of contaminants, such as sulfur or wax cannot be completely removed from petroleum and may end up in motor oil base stocks. It is the wax-like gelling in petroleum oils which make it harder for your car to turn over as the crankshaft attempts to spin through this thickly gelled substance on cold mornings.
Moreover, it wasn't until about 30 years ago that companies began looking for lubricants that would flow easily at extremely low temperatures. This search led to the development of manmade synthetic based fluids that are free from these waxes and contaminants which cause conventional lubricants to solidify during cold temperatures.
The result of this inspired research was the development of polyalphaolefins (PAO) and/or esters, which when combined, form a unique additive package comprising the basics of synthetic oils in the Group IV & V Oil Category.
PAO's were made decades ago by chemically joining ethylene molecules into carbon chains of uniform length and shape. The beauty of this is that these carbon chains can remain liquid and slippery under the widest range of engine conditions possible. The PAO's are then combined with an polyol-ester, which is simply a compound formed from the reaction of alcohol and certain acids. The resulting synthetic fluid provides optimum performance properties for engine lubricants which we all can benefit from today.
AMSOIL and Mobil were early pioneers in the development of synthetic fluids and still work together today as industry leaders in their respective specialities.
[ August 20, 2001: Message edited by: Turbo Steve ]